Applying Schema Theory to Teaching Foreign Language Comprehension

Abstract

The article considers the concept of schema theory as teaching methodology in language learning and teaching foreign languages. Schema theory emphasiz-es the importance of general knowledge and concepts that will help forming schemata. The term schema refers to a mental framework humans use to repre-sent and organize remembered information. It is defined as a data structure for representing generic concepts stored in memory. This approach to learning ex-amines how individuals create relationships between concepts. It is important for educators to understand the learning process, to emphasize the role of schema theory in student`s thinking and to provide relevant teaching methods to achieve academic success.